Please Stop Criticizing Free Markets

I see a lot of people bash free markets and capitalism stating current affairs as their example. America is nothing close to a free market, nor has it ever been. The farther it moves from a pure free market environment, the worse the economy has gotten. Hope this helps.

I was reading that Specialized thread where the OP was talking about how he's unhappy to see so many Specialized bikes and claiming that he wants more variety because he lives in America and that we have a free market. Then a bunch of other people went on to say silly things about the markets that they don't understand as well.
So, as it relates to Specialized: They own a large market share because they are a good value and many riders that have a few years of experience and money will go into a shop and end up buying one. The shop owners like them because they come with better components than similarly priced Cannondales and the shop owners are sick of Trek because 10 years ago, Trek was all that was everywhere, much like Specialized now...

For the amount of times I read in a thread some person using capitalism or free markets as part of their discussion in mountain bike pricing, or bike selection, it apparently is bike related. If I didn't read so much disinformation on these topics in bike threads, I would never start this thread. But to keep those threads from going off topic, I figured a separate topic would be better for all. There are titles to threads, and you can not click the ones that don't interest you. It's a novel idea and one that can be easily utilized by people with normally functioning brains.

“Two novels can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other involves orcs.”

I was reading that Specialized thread where the OP was talking about how he's unhappy to see so many Specialized bikes and claiming that he wants more variety because he lives in America and that we have a free market. Then a bunch of other people went on to say silly things about the markets that they don't understand as well.
So, as it relates to Specialized: They own a large market share because they are a good value and many riders that have a few years of experience and money will go into a shop and end up buying one. The shop owners like them because they come with better components than similarly priced Cannondales and the shop owners are sick of Trek because 10 years ago, Trek was all that was everywhere, much like Specialized now...

So, according to the paragraph in bold it's okay for dealers to be "sick of Trek because 10 years ago, Trek was all that was everywhere" but it's not okay for the OP of the other thread to be sick of seeing Specialized bikes everywhere? Doesn't make much sense to me but, hey, I'm pretty easily confused.

I don't want to even comment on your comments on free markets. I'm not too well-informed in that area and, guessing from your posts, I don't think you are either. Probably better to spare everyone else that train wreck of a debate.

“Two novels can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other involves orcs.”

Why not?
I don’t see a sticky that says mt. bike only topics. If the forum were titled Mt. Bike General Discussion, I would agree.

On a couple of other sites I visit 'General Discussion' has topics on everything under the sun with very little about the basic premise of the site. GD is meant for discussion of things that don't fall into the sites other sub category.

I have no interest in this topic but if others want to discuss it, I have no issue.

If I start reading a post I'm not interested in I simply skip it and push on...

Why not?
I don’t see a sticky that says mt. bike only topics. If the forum were titled Mt. Bike General Discussion, I would agree.

On a couple of other sites I visit 'General Discussion' has topics on everything under the sun with very little about the basic premise of the site. GD is meant for discussion of things that don't fall into the sites other sub category.

I have no interest in this topic but if others want to discuss it, I have no issue.

If I start reading a post I'm not interested in I simply skip it and push on...

So, according to the paragraph in bold it's okay for dealers to be "sick of Trek because 10 years ago, Trek was all that was everywhere" but it's not okay for the OP of the other thread to be sick of seeing Specialized bikes everywhere? Doesn't make much sense to me but, hey, I'm pretty easily confused.

I don't want to even comment on your comments on free markets. I'm not too well-informed in that area and, guessing from your posts, I don't think you are either. Probably better to spare everyone else that train wreck of a debate.

It's completely okay for him to be sick of whatever he wishes to be sick of. I take no issues with that. Nice job with the jab on my knowledge immediately after discrediting your own opinion. Maybe just leave the topic alone after admitting you have very little knowledge rather than try to make a point about something you admittedly know very little about?

It's okay for anyone to do and feel whatever they wish (provided it does not affect my personal property), just as it's okay for me to make a thread about something that is often discussed on this forum as side notes in threads where it is completely irrelevant. Just as it's okay for a moderator to delete this thread because they think it sucks, etc...

I have no interest in saying what's okay and what's not okay, just interested in discussing people's incorrect notion that we have a free market system in the US. Government has been subsidizing all kinds of business at an increasing rate in the past several decades. Reagan was probably the stepping stone for elevating it to a new level as a so called "conservative" doubled government spending and increased taxes by 65%. With the lines blurred between the parties, free markets have been blamed for many, if not all our economic problems all while the government has been teaming up with businesses picking their favorites and supporting them by monetizing their debt or by flat out buying their products at inflated prices. Reference the banking industry, the military industrial complex (GE), automobile industry, health care in the US is 45% funded by public funds, the farming industry, etc... These are not even close to examples of free market economies and those that blame the free markets are ill informed.